William Russell as Sir Lancelot

William Russell, best known for being part of the original cast of Doctor Who, in his first big television role, the lead in "The Adventures of Sir Lancelot", in 1956.
Although made for a British audience, the series was shown on NBC, one of the major broadcast networks in the USA, a very rare occurrence, and the last fourteen of the thirty half-hour episodes were shot in colour, though they were only seen in black and white in Britain.

Consequently, there were enough colour pictures for reference for me to colour this informal "between takes" shot.


Original B&W photo.

Dalek Invasion of Earth

One of the early scenes in the Doctor Who 50th anniversary episode took place in Trafalgar Square. The location was also used prominently in the second Dalek story, "The Dalek Invasion of Earth", in 1964.


Original B&W photo.

Dalekmania!

The anticipation for tonight's 50th Anniversary episode of Doctor Who extends across the globe but, in the 1960s, the hysteria was just as intense, albeit a bit more local, as this photo from the '60s shows.


Original B&W photo.

Tom Baker

Tom Baker aged 22, just prior to joining the army for National Service.

Original B&W photo.

Jon Pertwee

Jon Pertwee in 1955. At this time, he was known mainly as a radio actor, although he had already appeared in several films. It would be another 15 years before he would become a household name in television, as the third Doctor in Doctor Who.


Original B&W photo.

Roger Delgado

Roger Delgado, better known for his later portrayal of the first incarnation of the Master in Doctor Who, in a 1962 episode of the TV series "The Saint".


Original B&W photo.

Patrick Troughton - Enemy of the World

A scene from the newly rediscovered Doctor Who story from 1967. "The Enemy of the World", in which Patrick Troughton played both the Doctor and, pictured, the villain Salamander.


Original B&W photo.

Bernard Bresslaw

Bernard Bresslaw, shown here getting made up as the first Ice Warrior for the 1967 Doctor Who story, "The Ice Warriors", was already a household name in Britain, but was happy to play a role where his face wouldn't be seen, and came up with the sibilant voice himself, which meant he would be completely unrecognisable.

He had a young son at the time, which may have had something to do with him taking the part.


Original B&W photo.

Patrick Troughton

Patrick Troughton, during location shooting for the 1968 Doctor Who story, "Fury from the Deep".


Original B&W photo.

 

William Hartnell - the First Doctor

When William Hartnell first started in the role, he confidently predicted that Doctor Who would run for perhaps as long as 5 years. Half a century later, and we're about to be introduced to the 12th Doctor.
This picture shows Hartnell in rehearsals for the 1965 story, The Web Planet. The first Doctor usually sported a plain, black string tie, but here he's wearing something a little more elaborate. I couldn't find a colour reference for the cravat, but I thought it looked a little like the one worn by the sixth Doctor (Colin Baker) for most of his tenure, so I used the colour from that to add a note of continuity.


Original B&W photo.